The invention relates to a device for the detachable connection of an interior-equipment piece, such as interior paneling, to a support structure, such as an aircraft fuselage, comprising a plug-in holding mechanism made from a socket part and a connection pin that can be latched detachably in the socket, and a structure bracket and a bent connection arm for fastening the plug-in holding mechanism between the interior-equipment piece and the support structure, wherein the connection arm has a first and a second end part, one of which supports the connection pin.
In the development of cabins for newer types of aircraft, such as, for example, the Airbus A350, one goal is to design elements to be fastened to the fuselage of the aircraft, such as restrooms, galleys, passenger seats, cabin power networks, cabin lighting, and air nozzles, each as a complete cabin module, wherein, however, all of the connection points should be constructed as flexible, standardized interfaces and wherein simplified fastener designs should be used that allow assembly and disassembly without the use of tools (cf., the article “Cabin Development—New Approach for the A350—Cabin Customization,” One (magazine), German edition, Dec. 18, 2006, pg. 23). Devices of the type named above are designed, in contrast, for the fastening of elements of the interior paneling of an aircraft, such as wall and ceiling paneling parts. In principle, it should also be possible to reconfigure, on short notice, an existing, configuration, for example, the cabin equipment for a long-haul flight, in order to prepare, for example, the cabin equipment for a short-haul flight. The standardized interfaces should be applicable equally for all categories of aircraft. Furthermore, it should be guaranteed that the standardized interfaces reliably prevent rattling noises of the components connected to each other.
A device of the type noted above is known from EP 1 193 403 A2. This known device is a plate unit adjustable in the X/Y coordinate directions for wall paneling elements to be attached detachably by spring clips and consists of a first base plate adjustable in the X-direction and a second holding plate adjustable in the Y-direction. The base plate has at least two first elongated holes oriented in the X-direction and aligned with each other for the imagined fastening of the base plate adjustable in the X-direction to a wall that could involve the support structure or the fuselage of an aircraft. The holding plate has at least two second elongated holes oriented in the Y-direction and aligned with each other and through which the base plate is connected to the holding plate adjustable in the Y-direction by means of connection elements. On the holding plate, holding springs for receiving holding socket pins are arranged on the side facing the base plate at the corners of an imaginary rectangle oriented in the X/Y directions, wherein these socket pins form the connection pins of a plug-in holding mechanism and are connected to a wall paneling element that could involve a part of the interior paneling of an aircraft. The connection pin or holding socket pins is/are connected to the wall paneling element by means of a damping element and a bent connection arm. For this purpose, the connection arm has two drill holes for fastening the wall paneling element, wherein there is not more detailed information on the type of fastening in EP 1 193 403 A2.
In an aircraft, when a part of the interior paneling, such as, for example, a panel that could support parts of the electrical equipment, is swung outward from the ceiling or from the interior wall like a flap, the cables that are connected to the interior-equipment parts on the panel must move along the path of the panel. So that the cables do not obstruct the movement of the panel, the cables connected to the panel must have a certain extra length. In an aircraft, where the length of the installed cables measures many kilometers, the extra cable lengths mentioned above lead to undesired extra weight that could lie on the order of magnitude of several hundred kilograms. If a panel is to be detached from the ceiling or the interior paneling, it is also necessary to disconnect electrical plug connections that must be reconnected later by hand when the panel is reinstalled.
DE 10 2006 012 730 B3 describes a fastening system for fastening a cabin-equipment element to a support structure of an aircraft with which the previously mentioned problems of extra cable length and the making and breaking of plug-in connections should be able to be solved in part. To this end, work starts from the idea of integrating the necessary electrical contacts that must be broken for removal of a part of the interior paneling and must be later made again in at least one of several mechanical supports to which the support structure and interior paneling are connected, so that for coupling, one electrical connection with several contacts is made between the support structure and the interior paneling. In this known fastening system, an electrical contact device is constructed with a socket arrangement and a plug arrangement in at least one bearing of an interior-equipment part through which an electrical connection is made between the support structure and the electrical device of the cabin-equipment part for fixing this support. This support with integrated contact device, however, has a different configuration of the fastening system than a support without a contact device. This makes the use of this known fastening system inflexible.